Speyside is a “protected region” for Scotch Whisky distilling under UK Government legislation.According to Visit Scotland, this region includes the area between the Highlands to the west, Aberdeenshire in the east and extending north to the Cairngorms National Park. Speyside single malt whisky is single malt Scotch whiskies, distilled in Strathspey, the area around the River Spey in Moray and Badenoch and Strathspey, in northeastern Scotland.
During my recent trip to Scotland, I picked up several whisky samples from distilleries I had never explored before. One of those was the GlenAllachie 8 year old whisky, a Speyside single malt that had been sitting patiently in my tasting queue. Having finally poured a dram and spent some time with it, I can confidently say it was worth the wait.
If you’re exploring Scotch whisky beyond the basics, there’s no better place to look than Speyside, the region that produces many of the world’s most-loved single malts. But what exactly makes Speyside special, and which bottles truly earn the title of the best Speyside whisky?
Originally part of my tasting notes for the Golden Cask, this side-by-side comparison quickly proved too good not to deserve its own spotlight. Today, we dive into the delicious world of the Balvenie Golden Cask vs Caribbean Cask, two rum-finished Speyside single malts that showcase just how versatile The Balvenie can be when tropical cask influence enters the equation.
The last time I wrote about a Glen Grant whisky was in 2019 when I looked at the 12 year old Non Chill-Filtered. I need to rectify this oversight, as it is a whisky distillery that I like. So today, I look at the Glen Grant 10 year old single malt Scotch whisky.
The GlenDronach 18 year old is one of the best sherry cask-aged drams I have tasted. As someone who enjoys whisky, this expression quickly secured a spot in my top 10 favourite drams. Intrigued by the prospect of even greater delights, I ventured into the GlenDronach 21 year old Scotch whisky realm, expecting an unparalleled sensory experience.
Today I look at the 4th release in the Glenfiddich Experimental Series, the Glenfiddich Fire and Cane single malt Scotch whisky. This whisky follows the very successful Glenfiddich IPA Cask, the Glenfiddich Project XX and the Glenfiddich 21 year old Winter Storm Experimental series whisky released by Glenfiddich over the last couple of years.